James’ passing leads Ripley Tigers to sixth victory

KOSSUTH – In last week’s win against Belmont, Ripley quarterback Cody James became the all-time leading passer in school history.
He added to those totals Friday, passing for four touchdown to lead the Tigers to a 51-12 win against Kossuth to remain undefeated in Division 1-3A play.
James, a senior, was 13 of 21 for 229 yards. He tossed a 25-yard TD pass to Sedabris Boyd and a 19-yard TD strike to Isaiah Howard to give Ripley a 14-0 lead with 7:49 to play in the first quarter.
He scored on a 14-yard run on the Tigers’ third possession and hit Ralph Green for a wide open 25-yard TD pass all in the first quarter.
Ripley coach Chad Cook said his quarterback is starting to get a grasp of the concept of passing.
“What I’m starting to see as a coach is he’s seeing his second and third progression,” Cook said. “He threw some tonight to his third receiver and that tells me he’s growing up and understanding the passing concept of football. That’s great because it gets tougher from here on out.”
James directed a six-play, 48-yard drive, capped by a Garfield Campbell 4-yard plunge to start the second quarter. With under a minute left until halftime, he found an uncovered John Austin Moore for a 56-yard catch and run TD to push Ripley (6-3, 3-0) to a 41-0 advantage at the break.
Moore had 102 yards in total offense, including a 40-yard TD run in the third quarter.
Kossuth (1-7, 0-3) got on the board with two big plays in second half. Matthew Stewart picked off James’ only mistake and returned it 60 yards for the Aggies first score of the night with 6:53 to play in the third quarter. Later, Denzell Miller scored on a 65-yard punt return to make it 48-12.
“Ripley’s got a good ball club,” Kossuth coach Brian Kelly said. “They’ve changed up on offense and they’ve got a lot of weapons. The quarterback makes them go. He’s a great player. We just have to keep fighting.”
kedrick.storey@journalinc.com